San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1887-11-12

ulenJs 10 10 Oh 10 NtWlOunulNnu ana
Canada for salmon fishing and couldn't
tell how long he might be away, so Lady
Mildred never heard a word about il until
few weeks ago, although Of course she
suspected that IL was BeauChamp who had
got her father out Of his difficulties, and
she couldn't help knowing that her people
wanted her TO marry the man. When she
met him again in the beginning of the
season he paid her n great deal Of atten-
ton, and everything seemed to be going
smoothly until Lady Bracknell, for rea-
sons best known 10 herself, took IL into
her head TO put a stop TO the affair You
must have seen how easy she has found il
TO do that. Everybody has seen it, except
Lord StGines, who was frightened at first,
but was quite treasured after Bracknell
had promised to make his wife drop Beau
champ.
'Bracknell knows about this curious
money transaction, theng'' asked.
''He knows now. His father thought il
best to tell him when Hilda's game be-
came evident, and that is what makes me
afraid he isn't as straight as he ought tC
be. Because Lady BraCknen hasn't
dropped the man, and when you come to
think of it, it is clearly to Bracknell's in.
terest that Beauchamp should remain
SINGLE
That was undeniable, but what inter.
ested me more than Bracknell's probable
bad faith was the singular attitude as
sumed by Jim, who seemed TO be not only
prepared but anxious to give up the girl
of his heart to Beauchamp. | ventured
to express little of the surprise that
felt, which had the unexpected effect Of
making him very angry. What, he
wanted to know, did | take him forp And
as | made no reply, being unable to hit
upon one which should be at the same
time truthful and llattering, he went on
to explain that true love IA sentiment OF
which was evidently ignOranD is, in its
nature, disinterested; that the true lover
desires the happiness of the beloved OBJ
ject; not his own, and further, that, after
what had passed between Lord Staines
and Beauchamp, Lady Mildred's marriage
with the latter was the only conceivable
means of averting disgrace from her
family.
''As to the nature of true love-" an
swered, 81 will bow at once to your su.
periOr knowledge, although my own lin
tied opportunities of Judging would have
led me to think otherwise. But with re-
gard to these subtletieS about the disgrace
which threatens the house of Henley,
confess that | can neither follow you MOI
agree with you. BeauChamp, it seems,
has lent money TO Lord Staines, and il
you say that Lord Staines or his successor
is bound in honor TO refund the money
eventually, and to pay interest upon it in
the meantime, | am quite with you. But
when you assert that honor can only be
satisfied by Lady Nlildred's marrying,
against her will, man who doesn't want
to marry her, you really do get little be.
yOnd my depth"
"WhO told you that it would be against
her will" asked Jim.
my dear Jim," | returned, with ex-
cusable impotence, "am l an absolute
idiot?'
He did not reply in the negative with
that prOmptitude which / should have eX-
pected.
"N-nO," he said hesitatingly, after a
pause, 'but you may be mistaken. So,
of course, may L; only don't think am.
You see, | couldn't ask her point blank
whether she loved the man, could |? An
l know is that she had made up her mind
to marry him if he asked her, that she
thinks it her duty to marry him, and that
she is awfully distressed about Brack-
nell's behavior. | haven't such bad
opinion of Bracknell as you have. My
belief is that, if matters were put plainly
before him, he would see what a dirty
business this is and would refuse TO have
anything more to do with it. And I've
great mind to look him up and tell him
what think"
| endeavored to dissuade my friend
from taking this unCllled for step; | rep
resented to him, in the prcttiest language
at my command, that he would do far
better to mind his own business, and that
if he insisted upon meddling with what
did not concern him, he would only get
raped over the knucklcs for his pains;
but, as | mentioned at the beginning of
this chapter, very few people are wise
enough to asst upon my advice. Jim
assured me that he did not in the least
mind being raped over the knuckles, that
he intended to do what he was pleased to
call ''the straight thing" without regard
to personal consequences, and that, for the
rest, he was far too unhappy already to
be made either more or less so by Brack-
nell's displeasure.
So | let him go, without attempting to
comfort him about Lady Mildred, or tell
ing him what was my own belief with re-
gard to her affections. 1t would not, L
imagine, have made him any happier to
know that she was in all probability as
unhappy as he, and the prospect of this
love affair reaching a successful issue was
so very slight that it seemed best to let it
die of inanition, as all love affairs will, if
only sufficient time be allowed them.